Panthers Celebrate Their Seniors

PACKWOOD—On January 26, the Pekin Panthers boys and girls basketball teams hosted the Lone Tree Lions for a SEISC-North matchup. The girls fell by a final score of 50-30, while the boys etched out a 66-55 victory.

In between the two games, the Panthers held a ceremony for seniors JaeDon Wolver, Sven Dahlstrom and Alex Parsons.

After the games, Wolver spoke on the night with, “There were a lot of emotions. I am obviously happy to play on this team with all these great guys, but it is also sad because it has been four years, so this is going to end soon. I am mostly happy because I get to hang out with all my friends.”

Wolver spoke on the relationships he has formed with, “I think we are all pretty close. We are always hanging out together, and doing team bonding activities. We are a pretty tight knit group and we know when to keep each other in check.”

When asked about his favorite memory on the basketball team, Wolver responded with, “I gotta say getting my first in game dunk my junior year. That’s a big memory for me. Also all the seniors from my freshman year. They were just a big influence on me.” 

Sven Dalhstrom described his night with, “It was overwhelming with the gym being packed. It’s just a great feeling to have.”

Dahlstrom described his relationship with fellow senior JaeDon Wolver as, “We both have been on varsity for four years, so it’s a really great bond that we have.”

When asked about what lasting memories he will have of the team, Dalhstrom responded with, “Just being with my teammates each and every day working out with them or playing games.”

Pekin Head Coach Jon Swanson described Wolver and Dahlstrom with, “Two great kids. Two great leaders. I couldn’t ask for better young men for the basketball program to be the guiding light for all the younger kids. Two great young men, and we will miss them, but we still have some fun stuff to do here.”

For the girls, Alex Parsons is the lone senior for the team. Head Coach Davis Ehidal described Parsons with, “Alex has been a team leader and the team reflects on that with their own attitudes.” 

Parson described her night with, “It was much harder this year than I thought it would because I have bonded with the girls so much. I feel like we get along so well, and they feel like family, like they are all my family. Not just Ezra (Parsons), who actually is my sister.”

When asked what it was like being the lone senior on the team, Parsons responded with, “I hope that this year I was a good example attitude wise and leadership wise. I actually really enjoyed it because I clicked well with the younger girls. We all got along really well despite me being the only senior.”

The Pekin girls team falls to 6-10 with a conference record of 6-7. They will return to action on January 29, when they host the Davis-County Mustangs. 

The Pekin boys team pushes 9-7 with a conference record of 9-3. They will return to action on January 30, when they visit the Louisa-Muscatine Falcons.